If you are just starting out as an ASP.NET Developer you are definitely need to bookmark these TOP 5 ASP.NET web resources. Here is a list of the top resources I use constantly for finding quick solutions to my coding problems.

Why not go directly to the source to find your answers. The MSDN Library is tan excellent resource for the ASP.NET framework. When you search inside of Visual Studio the MSDN Library is what feeds the search results. If all of the answers were contained in the Library this post would be named “The Top 1 Resource for ASP.Net Developers”. So lets look at some of my other favorites.

This forum normally has not only the answers to your questions but the questions already asked so you can easily find a solution here. I find it very helpful to be able to type in the error I am getting and find many others who have had this problem as well. If the solutions do not fit your problem you can easily open a new thread to post your question. Here is a tip on posting questions: Make sure to include your code in the question. If you don’t normally you will be asked to anyway and this will delay the answer to your question.

If you cannot find your answer on ASP.Net Forums you should checkout Stackoverflow. Before I post a question on ASP.Net Forums I would do a quick search to see if the questions and answer are contained here. This could save you some time in waiting for responses from the community. Just be sure to follow the tips listed when asking a question or posting an answer on the Forum.

If you are just starting out working with ASP.NET the first thing you should do is download the AJAX Toolkit. After installing the toolkit you will need to know how to use it. This link has saved me quite a few times. The CollapsiblePanel Control saved me hours after my a client changed our UI.

Some will say “Hey this is not an ASP.Net resource” and they would be partially right. But since VS 2008 Microsoft has been pushing jQuery as the defacto JavaScript framework, VS 2010 it shipped with jQuery support. So if you are going to write in Client-side logic in your Web App (which you will) then you should probaly get familiar with jQuery. The documentation is great here and it is very helpful to walk through each Demo and view the source code in the “see below” section. Well if we are going to talk about jQuery we have to include jQuery UI. jQuery UI is requeired for using jQuery (not really just my opinion). If we are already using a Framework for our Javascript why not include the offical jQuery User Interface. Look more closely at the Demos in jQuery and you will see this:

Both are referencing the jQuery UI CDN. My favorite is the CSS Theme builder which allows you to customize your theme and then download it. jQuery UI saved me from having to create an overall theme by hand for a website redesign. Checkout the theme Black Tie for a professional look and feel.

These are the top Five Resources for ASP.NET I use most frequently. This is not intended to be an end all be all list, if you have other please put in the comments below.